Deducing the Nature of the Gods, Part II

February 29, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

Interestingly, the problem of good and evil exhibits the same structure as the problem of understanding the infinite. Augustine’s conversion from Manichaeism to orthodox Christianity was inspired, in part, by his realization that the Manichaean concept of deities that were absolute logical opposites was logically untenable. Logical opposites must be opposite in every detail. However, if evil exists, then it shares the fact that it exists with the good, since existence itself is good. Hence the absolute opposite of anything... Read more

Deducing the Nature of the Gods, Part I

February 28, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

A dialog about whether the Gods are infinite or not sometimes begins with “Gerald Gardner wrote that the Gods of the Wica are ‘little gods.’” Yes, he did, but he was not very interested in abstract theology. I don’t think he was asserting that, if the Abrahamic God is infinite, then our Pagan Gods must be finite. Rather, his point was that, whereas (many) Christians believe in a God who is distant, arbitrary, angry, vengeful, and punishing, Witches believe in... Read more

On the Primacy of Nondisprovable Hypotheses, Part IV

February 27, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

Returning to the issue of partitioning DHs from NDHs. A concept similar to Gurdjieff’s Partition was proposed by Karl Popper. I have not tried to find out whether Popper knew about Gurdjieff. Perhaps their proposals were simultaneous invention, as studied by Kroeber. In any case, the two men had entirely different agendas for why they were making the proposal. Popper was concerned with delimiting what sort of propositions can be investigated by means of the scientific method. Obviously, if a... Read more

If Bernie is not nominated, we must vote for Hillary; we must stop Trump

February 26, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

Some “Berniecrats” are proclaiming that if Bernie does not win the nomination, they will not vote for Hillary. That attitude is contemptible. It would give the election to Trump, who is fascist. Political scientists are saying that the impoverished and marginalized are voting for Trump, just as such people voted for Hitler. The white supremacists, the KKK, the American Nazi party are all supporting Trump. If he were elected, the US would become completely a police-state plutocracy. If he were... Read more

On the Primacy of Nondisprovable Hypotheses, Part III

February 25, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

Returning to the question of how the Divine can protect us without damaging our free will. Suppose it is the “Finger of God” that reaches in to flip the switch, collapse the quantum equation, to end or preserve the cat’s life. Such an intervention is absolutely undetectable. We could never know whether it had happened or not. The event must always appear to us to be absolutely random. Suppose there is a golf ball flying directly at one’s head. Suppose... Read more

On the Primacy of Nondisprovable Hypotheses, Part II

February 23, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

The eccentric Russian philosopher George Gurdjieff, thinking about the contentious interface between “science” and “religion,” introduced a principle that has been called Gurdjieff’s Partition: whereas the scientific method can deal with only disprovable hypotheses (for convenience, DH), religious beliefs must instead be considered nondisprovable hypotheses (for more convenience, NDH). That is, if a statement could be falsified by any conceivable fact, whether that fact has been discovered or not, then that statement falls in the turf of science. A scientific... Read more

On the Primacy of Nondisprovable Hypotheses, Part I

February 22, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

The subgenre of philosophy called epistemology is concerned with what we know—or think we know—and how we know it, which, of course, enlarges into the issues of the nature of consciousness, the differences and relationships between knowledge and belief, and the nature of reality—insofar as we are aware of reality, as distinct from what we think is reality. Lately there have been some well-publicized “debates” between proponents of doctrinaire positions on “science” and Creationism. These exchanges have been as inconclusive... Read more

Sam Wagar’s The Uses of Ecstasy is a masterpiece

February 14, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

It is easily one of the ten most important books ever written about the Craft as a religion. For that matter, it is high on my list of the most important books ever written about religion in general. And it is one of the very few books on the Craft that present a serious theology. Sam argues that the Craft movement consists of two different, although interwoven, versions of Witchcraft that in practice are distinct religions. One is the Outer... Read more

My Current Titles Are Now Available on Kindle

January 31, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

Getting them on there has been a technical problem. More precisely, it has been me having problems coping with the technology. But at last it’s done. Getting the novel, Aradia and the Books of the Sacred Marriage, up there is a relief. It had been growing for 45 years. Now it is done, released, finished. I can move on. Hippie Commie Beatnik Witches: A Social History of the New Reformed Orthodox Order of the Golden Dawn has been available on... Read more

It is encouraging to receive good reviews

January 2, 2016 By Aidan Kelly

It is a pleasant surprise to find that someone has been saying good things about you behind your back. I don’t often look at my book listings on Amazon to see if there’s a new review. Not every day. Or every week. Or every month. Hardly ever, actually. So it made my day to discover, by accident, Mr. Newmoon’s praise of my work. I found him on FB, friended him, and thanked him. It also occurred to me that it... Read more